A new study has shown great potential for using robotic exoskeletons to physically train young sufferers of cerebral palsy to walk. Cerebral palsy is an umbrella terms for a range of neurological and movement disorders that develop during early life. According to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, it is the most common motor disability in childhood, with global figures ranging from 1.5 to more than 4 per 1,000 live births or children of a defined age range. Sufferers usually walk with their knees in constant flexion, in a gait known as crouch gait. This basically means that their legs cannot straighten fully as they walk. This is often treated using physical stimulation, injections and surgery. The problem is that even with the current treatments available, children with the debilitating condition still end up losing their mobility as they approach adulthood. According to the paper published from this study, half of all children with cerebral palsy completely lose the ability to walk by adulthood. The study, run a team of biomedical engineers of the National Institute of Health, hopes to prove that using robotic exoskeletons could help to train childrens bodies to keep their mobility into later life. In … Continue reading →

From the moment you entered grade school, youve been told how important it is to be organized. Later, your teachers added a task and told you that being organized also meant knowing how to manage your time. Learning time management is such an important part of learning how to function successfully in life, and it is difficult for everyone. But, from the outside, most people make it look so easy. It seems like they dont juggle half as many things as you they go to work or school only, they dont have multiple doctor appointments a week or therapies they attend. I have been interested in time management for the better part of the past five years. Trying to accomplish any goal while battling an illness or multiple illnesses is not for the faint of heart and every second counts. I have tried so many things, from GTD brain dumping techniques, living a strictly digital life,paper to-do lists, creating a daily schedule for myself and all left me feeling defeated. I started back at square one. I found during all of this trial-and-error period that I liked paper planning and writing down things. I also knew that I liked apps. … Continue reading →

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, cerebral palsy (CP)caused by neurological damage before, during or after birthis the most common movement disorder in children, limiting mobility and independence throughout their lives. An estimated 500,000 children in the U.S. have CP. Although nearly 60 percent of children with the disorder can walk independently, many have crouch gait, a pathological walking pattern characterized by excessive knee bending, which can cause an abnormally high level of stress on the knee. Crouch gait can lead to knee pain and progressive loss of function and is often treated through invasive orthopedic surgery. Assistant professor ofmechanical engineering Zach Lerner, who joined Northern Arizona Universitys Center for Bioengineering Innovation in 2017, recently published a study in the journalScience Translational Medicine investigating whether wearing a robotic exoskeletona leg brace powered by small motorscould alleviate crouch gait in children with cerebral palsy. We evaluated a novel exoskeleton for the treatment of crouch gait, one of the most debilitating pathologies in CP, Lerner said. In our exploratory, multi-week trial, we fitted seven participants between the ages of five and 19 with robotic exoskeletons designed to increase their ability to extend their knees at specific phases in the … Continue reading →

A fashion blogger who lost her brother, who had a rare genetic disorder, is set to shave her head so a young boy with cerebral palsy can access potentially life-changing treatment. Chloe Helen Miles, 21, from Aldershot, Hampshire, hopes to raise a staggering 30,000 so Enzo Thompson, four, can access stem cell treatment and liveas independently as possible. I knew straight away that I wanted to shave my hair for Enz, for a chance at a better quality of life for such a kind and funny boy, she told HuffPost UK. And I know my brother wouldve wanted me to. Chloe Miles Chloe was left distraught when her brother Dylan died at the age of 17. He lived with Wolf Hirschhorn Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder which left him severely disabled. One year after his death, she began volunteering with Sebastians Action Trust- a charity supporting the families of seriously ill children,which had helped Chloe and her family when Dylan was alive. The charity introduced her to Enzo and his family in November 2015 and from there, a beautiful relationship blossomed. I was a little worried that meeting Enzo for the first time would be difficult and I did wonder … Continue reading →

A thief and fraudster from Derbyshire who deliberately targeted elderly or vulnerable victims has been jailed for two years. Kayleigh Bradshaw moved herself in to one mans home for two days knowing he had alcohol problems and suffered from bi-polar disorder. She ate his food, drank his booze and stole 330 of goods from him. That experience left the man needing hospital treatment for anxiety. Bradshaw then moved on to twice steal cash from a 77-year-old woman who could only get around with the help of oxygen. Another victim, a woman in her 40s who suffered from cerebral palsy, was targeted by the 37-year-old who stole her purse from a locker at a public swimming pool. And Bradshaw also stole a purse from the handbag of a woman who had put it on her sons pushchair at a church. Jailing her at Derby Crown Court for two years, Judge Robert Egbuna said: You were aggressive in your approach to obtaining money, it was planned and you targeted elderly or vulnerable people. You preyed on vulnerable members of society who require our protection and assistance. You caused them untold anxiety and you were persistent in committing your callous crimes. You knew … Continue reading →